Cocktail Sauce and the Culinary History of New Jersey
By Chef Charles Knight
Cocktail sauce, a tangy, zesty condiment beloved alongside shrimp, oysters, and crab, first made a splash in the United States in the early 1900s at New York City’s famous Grand Central Oyster Bar. Around the same time, Delmonico’s—America’s first fine-dining restaurant—served its version, cementing cocktail sauce as a seafood staple.
But to truly appreciate its roots, we have to look a little deeper—beyond Manhattan’s oyster counters—to the Jersey Shore of the 1800s.
New Jersey: America’s 19th-Century Culinary Playground
In the days before air conditioning and refrigerated train cars (pre-1880), New Jersey’s resort towns—Cape May, Atlantic City, Long Branch, and Seaside Heights—were to Americans what Disney World and Orlando are today: irresistible summer destinations.
Hotels and restaurants along the shore attracted chefs and cooks from New York City, Philadelphia, and beyond, eager to escape the sweltering urban kitchens for a season of sea breezes and fresh local ingredients. Here, they mingled with New Jersey’s homegrown talent, trading recipes, techniques, and ideas. Many chefs returned to their city restaurants with these “borrowed” recipes, proudly serving them as their creations.
As any good food historian will tell you, if you want to find the origin of a dish, look at where its key ingredients were grown or produced before the age of modern transportation. In the case of cocktail sauce, nearly all the essential ingredients for ketchup, such as tomatoes, horseradish, hot peppers, and citrus, were grown in the Garden State during the 1800s. Only Dijon mustard (from France) and Worcestershire sauce (from England) were imported.
My Jersey Shore Memories
For me, cocktail sauce will always taste like Seaside Heights in the summertime—Under the Boardwalk at the Beachcomber Bar & Grill, ice-cold beer in hand, and a plate of fresh clams or shrimp just begging for a dunk in the best cocktail sauce you've ever had.
The Best Cocktail Sauce You Ever Had
Equipment: 1-qt mixing bowl or Pyrex measuring cup, measuring spoons
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Makes 4–6 servings
Ingredients
- Juice of 1 small lime
- 1 cup of ketchup
- ½ cup prepared horseradish
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon Crystal hot pepper sauce
Instructions
- In a 1-quart Pyrex measuring cup or mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.
- Stir well until fully blended.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Serving Suggestions: Pair with cooked shrimp, crab, or lobster, and raw clams or oysters.
For a Twist: Add diced cucumber and jalapeño for a fresh, spicy kick.
